Govindaram

Hare Krishna I know nothing, but what Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, is saying is abvious, anybody/anywhere can chant the Maha-Mantra, without being initiated...but 'later on' search out bona-fide spiritual master. /images/graemlins/smile.gif ps bit late on my post-but very nice explanation YN /images/graemlins/laugh.gif

<font color="red">Diary of a Traveling Preacher </font color> , volume 3 - Chapter 24 "devotees of the Lord carry Vrindavan in their hearts." Vrindavan, India, February 20th - 23rd 2001 "May my eyes become overwhelmed with ecstasy by seeing the nectar waves of Vrindavan's beauty. May my intelligence drown in the nectar ocean of Vrindavan's glories. May my body become agitated by the swiftly moving currents of ecstatic bliss and thus roll about on the ground of Vrindavan. Falling down like a stick, may I offer my respectful obeisances to all the residents of Vrindavan." [Vrindavan Mahimamrta, Introduction, Text 14] Our small party of pilgrims entered Vrindavan early on the morning of February 20. After all I had told them about this holy dhama, Mickey and Sherry were all eyes as the unique scenes unfolded before us. Bullock carts lumbered slowly through the small streets loaded with various wares of clay pots, vegetables, hay and cow patties. Sadhus, their faces decorated with tilak of various sampradayas, walked happily on their way to see Krsna in any one of the 5000 temples in Vrindavan. Monkeys scurried here and there engaged in their eternal mischief, and the atmosphere was vibrant with the bright cloth of the markets, the sounds of bells ringing from the temples, and the villagers greeting each other with "Jaya Radhe!" No doubt it is a spiritual abode, but I was anxious that Mickey and Sherry would perhaps focus on the thin veil of matter covering the dhama which keeps ordinary tourists away. Pigs and dogs were everywhere, overflowing sewers created a filthy stench, dust covered everyone and everything, and the loud noises of tractors, cars and three-wheeler scooters competed with the sweet transcendental sounds of the dhama. Depending on one's consciousness, one can see either matter or spirit here. Once Srila Prabhupada was walking in Vrindavan with his disciples, describing the spiritual glories of the dhama. His description was so detailed, so vivid, that devotees were convinced he was seeing the pastimes of the Lord with his very eyes. At one point a disciple politely interrupted and said that despite Srila Prabhupada's wonderful description, he could see only the rickshaw drivers, old buildings, sewers, pigs and dogs. Srila Prabhupada smiled and said that his disciple could not see the spiritual nature of the dhama because there was a "speck" in his eye. The devotee responded by rubbing his eyes, causing Srila Prabhupada to laugh. Srila Prabhupada then said, "No, not like that. The 'speck' is your material desires. When you remove those desires from your heart, then you will see Vrindavan as it is." In a sense, Mickey and Sherry had come to Vrindavan as pilgrims. Although they were tourists in India, they were no longer interested in going to the spots that tourists generally go to. On the way to Vrindavan, they had taken a side trip to India's ultimate tourist destination, the Taj Mahal. But upon entering Vrindavan, they could immediately perceive the difference. As we neared the MVT buildings, where they would be staying, Mickey offered his first assessment of Vrindavan: "The Taj Mahal was dead compared with Vrindavan. There's a special atmosphere here!" Our first darsan was with Srila Prabhupada in his samadhi. While they walked around looking at the intricate design of the samadhi, I sat before the large brass murti of my spiritual master, as I always do upon first entering Vrindavan, and gave a report of my devotional service since I had last been there. I spoke of my success and my failures in my recent attempts to preach in Russia. I had managed to visit more than 20 temples and help inspire the devotees in their service to the Lord, but had failed, once again, in relinquishing the material desires in my heart that keep me from offering pure devotion to the Lord. I revealed my plans for service until next Kartika, when I would return to Vrindavan, and asked for Srila Prabhupada's blessings. After taking darsan of Radha-Syamasundara, we took rickshaws into town to visit the Radha-Damodhar temple, where I proceeded to tell Mickey and Sherry about Srila Prabhupada's pastime of coming to the West. The story so touched their hearts that when Sri Prahlad led kirtan in Srila Prabhupada's room, they enthusiastically chanted Hare Krsna with us. It was the first time they had chanted, and it seemed to me to be the beginning of the end of their material existence. "O Lord, is Your impersonal spiritual effulgence not always present everywhere? Even so, it has not been able to break even a single small leaf from the tree of repeated birth and death. On the other hand, the moment Your holy name is taken by the tongue it thoroughly shatters the tree of birth and death down to its roots. Of these two (the spiritual effulgence or the holy name), which should be served?" [ Padyavali - Srila Rupa Goswami ] In the evening we visited the temple of Vraja-Mohan, the Deity of Srila Narottam das Thakur. After kirtan, Mickey turned to me and said that he had heard that Vraja-Mohan was a special Deity for me. I replied that it was true and that I was helping to reconstruct the temple. I mentioned that my Russian disciples, eager to help me in my service, had recently donated more than $1000 to paint the entire temple and make three new outfits for the Lord. I explained to Mickey that this is the real meaning of Deity worship; it allows us to render personal, intimate service to the Lord. Looking at Vraja-Mohan, Mickey said, "I think I understand now." When we all left the temple Mickey wasn't around, so I went back inside to find him. From a distance, I saw him with the priest. He was handing him a $100 bill, pointing to the Deity and indicating that it was for His service. On February 21, we visited other prominent temples. As we headed into town that morning I didn't see Sherry, and I asked Mickey if she would be coming. He smiled and pointed to the group of ladies that were accompanying us. There I saw Sherry in a silk sari with a bindi on her forehead. She kept her head covered the whole day and offered her respects to all the Deities in the temples we visited, folding her hands and sometimes praying. I also prayed to those same Deities, amazed by Their potency to transform the hearts of my guests: pratima naha tumi-saksatvrajendra-nandana "My dear Lord, You are not a statue; You are directly the son of Maharaja Nanda." [CC Madhya 5.97] February 22 was Lord Siva's appearance day and I decided to spend the day alone, going on pilgrimage to Govardhan Hill. I was particularly eager to visit the temple of Chakaleswara-Mahadeva, a famous temple of Lord Siva on the banks of the Manasi Ganga lake. It is one of the five principle Siva temples in Vrindavan. As Gaudiya Vaisnavas we don't worship Lord Siva in his capacity as a demigod, but rather take shelter of him as the greatest devotee of the Lord. Specifically, we ask him to allow us entrance into Vrindavan, as he is the guardian of that holy place. When I reached Chakaleswara-Mahadeva temple, I found more than 100 Vrajavasis sitting in front of the siva linga absorbed in an enthusiastic bhajan. One man was singing the glories of Chakaleswara-Mahadeva while playing harmonium, another wildly beat the mrdunga drum, and others played karatalas. They were all dressed in colorful attire to mark the occasion. The men had on either white or yellow dhotis, with big red, blue or green sashes around their waists. The ladies wore a multitude of colored saris, and danced joyfully on the perimeter of the bhajan. Upon seeing me, the men beckoned me forward and sat me down in their midst. Although I didn't know any of the words of the bhajan, I remained there for well over an hour, fascinated by the atmosphere and praying to Lord Siva for mercy. From Chakaleswara-Mahadeva temple I proceeded to Uddhava Kunda, where Uddhava prayed to the Lord to take birth as a blade of grass in order to get the mercy of the Vrajavasis, whose lotus feet traverse that holy place. In Kartika the elderly pujari there, whose heart is very pure, had given me an ancient salagram sila, and I was bringing him a donation for the temple. When he saw me he smiled and called me forward. When I gave him the laksmi he was very surprised, and immediately turned to the Radha-Krsna Deities on the altar and started speaking to Them: "Thakurji, just see what mercy has come! Look! Now You will get some new clothes! This devotee has brought You a donation. Thakurji, look!" Watching his personal dealings with the Deity, I hankered to one day have the same relationship with mine. As he continued to talk to Them, coming up with different ideas how he would use the money in Their service, I quietly offered my obeisances and started to leave. But when the pujari saw me going, he quickly grabbed my arm and asked me to wait. Going to the altar, he picked up a small govardhan sila and came back, putting Him in my hand. I politely refused, telling him that I already had a govardhan sila. But he wouldn't listen. He looked at the govardhan sila and said, "Can't you see? He wants to go with you! He doesn't want to stay here any more. He wants to go with you." The truth is I couldn't see, but I had a strange feeling that the pujari could see. I thought, "This is a special day, a special place, and this pujari seems to be a special devotee. Perhaps I should accept the sila." When I looked closely at the Deity I saw that He, too, was very special. He was a dark red-brown color, with an amazing streak of white quartz on His head that formed a perfectly natural crown. He was gorgeous. The pujari kept insisting and mildly chastised me, "Prabhuji, he wants to go with you. Are you going to refuse Him?" Looking at the pujari I said, "No, Prabhu, I won't refuse. If you say He wants to come with me, then I will accept Him." As the "two" of us departed, the pujari stood up and happily waved goodbye. What wonderful mercy can be had in the transcendental land of Vrindavan! What great fortune I obtained that day in my solitary wanderings at the foot of Govardhan Hill! "O brother, what kinds of enjoyment have you not already experienced in this world of birth and death? What kind of fame and worship have you not already attained in this world by scholarship, charity and sacrifice? For today, O friend, simply accept whatever food comes unsought, look to see the good qualities in others but not their faults, do not put yourself forward, but remain obscure and unbeknown, and continually wander, without any companion, in this beautiful forest of Vrindavan." [Vrindavan Mahimamrta, Chapter 2, Verse 14] I spent the rest of the afternoon at Srila Raghunatha das Goswami's samadhi mandir, chanting and reading. In the evening I returned to Vrindavan to make final preparations for my departure to Africa the next morning. When I arrived there, Mickey and Sherry came to see me. When they asked where I was during the day, I said I had been to Govardhan Hill and Radha Kunda. Apparently, some devotees had told them about the glories of those places, and they lamented that they wouldn't have a chance to see them before leaving India. Upon hearing their enthusiasm to go there, and considering that such a visit would be the crowning glory of their trip to India, we decided to go to Radha Kunda on our way to Delhi to catch our flights. Rising early the next day, myself, Gaura Sakti, and Mickey and Sherry packed our belongings in the Tata Sumo van that would be taking us to the airport. As I loaded my things in the back of the van, I was already feeling separation from Vrindavan. "To drink: the freely flowing streams are filled with clear sweet water as nectar. To eat: the dried leaves from the trees are foods as palatable as one could desire. The warm breezes are just as one would have them. To reside: there are clean mountain caves and other suitable residences. Alas! Alas! How unfortunate I would be if I wished to leave Vrindavan!" [Vrindavan Mahimamrta, Chapter 1, Verse 15] Actually, there is only one reason to leave Vrindavan, and that is to preach Krsna consciousness in foreign countries. And by that preaching, one becomes qualified to actually live in, and one day see, the real glories of Vrindavan dhama. "Now that Lord Caitanya, His heart filled with mercy, has descended to this world, those living entities who had formerly never practiced yoga, meditated, chanted mantras, performed austerities, followed various Vedic restrictions, studied the Vedas, performed spiritual activities, or refrained from sins, have become able to easily plunder the crest jewel of all goals of life. Now that wonderfully powerful Lord Caitanya has descended to this world, the materialists, who had fallen into the raging river of fruitive deeds, have been rescued and are situated on firm ground, even the great boulders have melted, and even those whose hearts were fixed in non-devotional yoga are dancing in the ecstasy of love of Krsna. The whole world is now suddenly flooded by the nectar waters of the ocean of pure love for Krsna. Now there is suddenly a great wonder of symptoms of ecstatic love never seen or heard of before. All this has suddenly appeared now that Lord Krsna has descended in a form as splendid as gold." [Caintanya Candamrta, Chapter 12] By the time we left we were running late, but Mickey and Sherry were determined to see Govardhan Hill and Radha Kunda. After a quick darsana of Lord Giriraja upon arriving, we proceeded to Radha Kunda, the most sacred of all holy places. Situated in a small rural village, Radha Kunda can be truly appreciated only by those advanced souls whose eyes are covered by the salve of love of God. Beginners can have some appreciation by the study of sastra, but non-devotees can only be bewildered as to why someone would be eager to visit the two little ponds at the foot of Govardhan Hill called Syama Kunda and Radha Kunda. However, I could see that I didn't have to worry about Mickey and Sherry. They were eager to see Radha Kunda and appreciated that it was indeed special mercy for them. They had been groomed for this moment by the devotees, and no doubt by the Lord Himself. What tourists ever get darsan of Sri Nathji in Nathdwar, Sri Sri Radha-Govinda in Jaipur and Sri Sri Radha-Syamasundara in Vrindavan? What tourists live for 10 days on the maha prasadam of the Lord? What tourists get the opportunity to give their hard-earned money to Vraja-Mohan, the beloved Deity of Srila Narottam das Thakur? The accumulative effect of all that mercy was seen in the awe and reverence Mickey and Sherry displayed when they approached Radha Kunda and put her sacred waters upon their heads. On the way back to the van, Mickey said to me, "Maharaja, you've been so kind to us these 10 days here in India. In particular, you and Sri Prahlad have answered each and every one of our questions to our full satisfaction. But I have one question left, and this time I'm afraid that neither of you will be able to answer!" Thinking there may be a lingering doubt in Mickey's mind despite all the mercy he received, I said, "What's that question, Mickey." He said, "How will I be able to explain all of this to my friends back home? How does one put into words the wonders of what we've seen and done? How do you explain Vrindavan to those who've never met devotees like yourselves?" I replied, "It's not easy, Mickey. But devotees of the Lord carry Vrindavan in their hearts, and wherever they go they share that mercy with others. My spiritual master in particular took Vrindavan to the West. If people read his books, they'll get an idea of the special mercy that is available here." As we got into the van, everyone had an empty feeling inside them. All of us felt we were leaving our real home. As we drove down the road and out of Vraja, both Mickey and Sherry looked back. From the look in their eyes, I knew one day they would return. "I am not strong enough to go to the far shore of the great nectar ocean of Vrindavan's glories. Who can go there? However, because I love Vrindavan I will now dip into that ocean. I pray that this endeavor may become successful and bring an auspicious result. Day and night I glorify Vrindavan, which is filled with the wonder of Sri Sri Radha and Krsna's pastimes, the wonder of the greatest sweetness, the ultimate nectar of Lord Hari, the sweetest, most beautiful auspiciousness and a flood of virtues Ananta-sesa, Siva, and a host of others cannot cross. Think of Vrindavan with love. Roll in its dust. Love it ardently. Please its moving and non-moving residents. Worship Sri Radha's birthplace. With all your heart take shelter of Sri Vrindavan, the best of all holy places." [Vrindavan Mahimamrta, Chapter 1] /images/graemlins/smile.gif www.traveling-preacher.com

Hare Krishna! Yes, but thats no excuse "for being weak", you think oh I am so weak I might as well not follow, 3 key things you need as said by Sanatana Goswami- Determination Enthusiasm Patience Haribol

Hare Krishna!

Bhagavad Gita As It Is Chapter 4, Transcendental Knowledge TEXT 40 ajnas casraddadhanas ca samsayatma vinasyati nayam loko 'sti na paro na sukham samsayatmanah SYNONYMS ajnah--fools who have no knowledge in standard scriptures; ca--and; asraddadhanah--without faith in revealed scriptures; ca--also; samsaya--doubts; atma--a person; vinasyati--falls back; na--never; ayam--this; lokah--world; asti--there is; na--neither; parah--next life; na--not; sukham--happiness; samsaya--doubtful; atmanah--of the person. TRANSLATION <font color="red"> But ignorant and faithless persons who doubt the revealed </font color> <font color="red"> scriptures do not attain God consciousness. </font color><font color="red">For the doubting soul there is happiness neither in this world nor in the next. </font color> PURPORT Out of many standard and authoritative revealed scriptures, the Bhagavad-gita is the best. Persons who are almost like animals have no faith in, or knowledge of, the standard revealed scriptures; and some, even though they have knowledge of, or can cite passages from, the revealed scriptures, have actually no faith in these words. And even though others may have faith in scriptures like Bhagavad-gita, they do not believe in or worship the Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna. Such persons cannot have any standing in Krsna consciousness. They fall down. Out of all the above-mentioned persons, those who have no faith and are always doubtful make no progress at all. Men without faith in God and His revealed word find no good in this world, nor in the next. For them there is no happiness whatsoever. One should therefore follow the principles of revealed scriptures with faith and thereby be raised to the platform of knowledge. Only this knowledge will help one become promoted to the transcendental platform of spiritual understanding. In other words, doubtful persons have no status whatsoever in spiritual emancipation. One should therefore follow in the footsteps of great acaryas who are in the disciplic succession and thereby attain success. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

Hare Krishna I said: Let the girl love Krishna, in her own simple way, because otherwise she will have all these doubts in her head, and hey just let Krishna help her, and you know the Gopis love for Krishna was very simple as well, but for 'her' to progress she HAS TO CHANT the maha-mantra and take shelter of a bona-fide spriritual master, and Krishna will help her. ps don't forget to bless me .. /images/graemlins/smile.gifok

Once Srila Prabhupada was giving a lecture about how we have to be cent percent Krishna conscious. He was ramming home the point that we have to surrender to Krishna one hundred percent. At the end of the class the devotees were serious. They were looking down thinking, "Who can come up to the standard of complete surrender?" As if he could read their minds, Prabhupada relaxed his mood a little bit and said, "If you can be ninety percent Krishna conscious, then you can also go back to Godhead." He was on a large, high Vyasasana, four feet in the air and had to go down some steps to get off the Vyasasana. As he started down he said, "Even if you are eighty percent surrendered, Krishna will still take you." Then he got off the Vyasasana and started walking away. His chaddar was flowing behind him, dragging on the ground. He stopped, looked at the devotees and said, "Even if you are seventy percent Krishna conscious, still Krishna will take you." He threw his chaddar over his shoulder and walked off with his head high. Jayapataka Swami

Hare Krishna I remember you saying somewhere that your parents don't know about you liking Krishna? or maybe I'm wrong /images/graemlins/confused.gif

Hare Krishna I have a small altar at home in a book case 'type thing' I offer flowers (they seem to grow more as I offer!) and some incense, no deity worship, but very nice picture's of Radha-Krishna/Pancha Tattva/SrilaPrabhupada and of course disiplic/six Goswamis and Prahlada Maharaja and Lord Nirsimhadeva, the way I remember Krishna is by talking to Him in my mind like i.e me>"was that chanting ok" krishna>"could be better" me>"next time?" krishna>"?" Haribol...I'm not crazy!

Hare Krishna The Krishna Book movie version would not work on mass public--only on Gita devotees, Mahabharata would have to be made first as it contains items which are easy to understand, then maybe Krishna Book, ps talk about living in a dream world, if I had the funds I would MAKE IT HAPPEN! /images/graemlins/cool.gif

Hare Krishna Not sure what to say about using Krishna's name to sell bad products, have you heard about the shoes thing? I hope all the company members become Krishna Consious, and make there drinks un-alcoholic, and then give all their money to me..oops sorry to devotees, then it would be good.

Hare Krishna Why don't some of the Iskcon prabhus/matas star in the Epic, with very nice special effects, and an unbelievable score<<a must, it would cost 'big' but the effect of karmis seeing it would be good. I'd love to see CC turned into a movie epic like Mahabharta, but it would never happen. /images/graemlins/frown.gif

Hare Krishna Let the girl just love Krishna! In her own simple way! ps if you want to love Krishna more, then you have to clean you heart/mind, do this by chanting this, anytime/anywhere- Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare and if you become a pure devotee, then don't forget that I gave you this advice first, and bless me! /images/graemlins/smile.gif

In his Radhakundastakam Sri Raghunatha dasa has confirmed that the desirevine of love for Krishna of even an ignorant and unqualified person who performs some service at Radhakunda in the form of bathing there, living there, <font color="red"> seeing it </font color> or touching it, will blossom and bear the fruits of Radha's service:

<font color="red"> Diary of a Traveling Preacher </font color> volume 5 - Chapter 6 " Now There is Hope " Mlawa, Poland, June 21 to July 07, 2003 Our last festival of the spring tour was in Mlawa. The newspaper that had slandered us was also in Mlawa, so I was a bit nervous as we drove in to the town with a busload of 60 devotees for the first Harinam. The newspaper had printed our rebuttal, of course, but people in general are more inclined to bad news than good, so I feared that the people of Mlawa might be indignant. We arrived in town as thousands of people began a busy morning shopping in an outdoor market near the center of the city. Fruit and vegetable stands and stalls selling varieties of clothing, shoes, and other commodities packed the area, with crowds milling through the small lanes. The market was open only half a day, and I wanted to give out as many invitations as possible, so I had some extra devotees come, and I asked the kirtan party to move at a quick pace through the market and surrounding streets. Sri Prahlad led a powerful kirtan with his accordion as the devotees danced in ecstasy. Whatever doubts or suspicions people may have had were quickly dissipated in the sunshine of the holy names. As people smiled and waved we practically flew through the market, distributing a record 6,000 invitations in 90 minutes. I woke up the next morning anticipating a big crowd at the festival, only to be disappointed by dark clouds on the horizon. As the rumbling clouds headed south towards Mlawa, I offered them my respects, remembering Lord Krsna's instructions to the Pandavas in Mahabharata: During the battle of Kuruksetra, Aswattama launched a brahmastra weapon at the Pandavas. So powerful was the weapon that even the Pandavas could not destroy or counteract it. Being fully surrendered devotees, they immediately turned to Krsna for shelter. The Lord told them that when opposition is stronger than oneself, it is best avoided. He told them to take off their armor, lay down their weapons, and offer obeisances to the brahmastra. If they did so, Krsna said, they would render the brahmastra powerless. As the weapon raced towards them, all the Pandavas except Bhima took off their armor and laid down their bows and arrows. Bhima stood defiant. Just as the brahmastra was about to hit them, the other Pandavas forcibly took off Bhima's armor and threw his weapons to the side. Then all of them bowed to the brahmastra as it passed harmlessly overhead. My anxiety was quickly forgotten when I arrived at the festival site. I was happy to see that the authorities had given us the street next to the town hall and blocked it off to traffic. The tent crew had spent all morning setting up on the prestigious spot, but just as people began entering at 5 pm, my worst fears came true, and the rain started pouring down. Some people took shelter of the tents, but many simply turned around and went home. "So much for the potency of my obeisances!" I said to myself. The rest of the day it alternately rained and held back. Nevertheless, 400 or 500 determined people attended. Among them was a girl who approached Jayatam das and me as I was signing books at the book table. She looked me over for a moment. "Yes," she said, "it's you. Can I show you something?Of course," I replied, intrigued by her enthusiasm. She opened her wallet and pulled out a photo of her family and me posing next to our festival stage. "It was taken in Kolobrzeg three years ago," she said. "I always remember that festival. It was one of the best days of my life." She reached in her bag and took out the Science of Self-realization and Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta in Polish. "I bought these two books at that time," she said, "but I want to return them now." I was surprised. "But why?" I asked. "I just can't understand them," she replied. "I've tried, but I'm not very intelligent. I have concluded that there's no hope. I'll never understand God." I had things to attend to, so I introduced her to Vara-nayaka das. "Try to convince her to keep the books," I told him. When I saw Vara-nayaka later, he told me the girl was going to think it over and come back the next day. As the festival closed that night, only a few people were still there. As rain poured down during the last kirtan I noticed a few drunks, a social worker with some retarded children, and several deaf people standing motionless in front of the stage. This was not the crowd I had expected. The next day it rained even harder, but whenever there was a break in the weather, people would appear from the nearby apartment buildings and run over to the festival. Gradually the weather began to change and eventually cleared completely, so by 8 pm we had a normal crowd. They made up for lost time by hurriedly passing through the exhibits and buying books and gifts. The restaurant sold out in no time. But with only two hours left, I was disappointed. The festival simply wasn't the success I felt it could have been had it not been rained on. The only consolation came when I went onstage to lead the final kirtan. I was amazed to see that the crowd was one of the largest of the spring tour. They applauded when a devotee came forward and gave me a huge garland of marigolds reaching down to my ankles. As evening set in and the bright streetlights illuminated the area, I started a kirtan and was happy to see many people from the previous day, including the drunks, the deaf people, and the retarded children. I was feeling exhausted, so after a few minutes I called Sri Prahlad to take over the kirtan. True to form, he soon had a large crowd dancing blissfully. The deaf people, who had stood motionless in front of the stage the night before, began dancing wildly. Because they couldn't hear the rhythm, their dancing wasn't in time with everyone else's, but that didn't hold them back. Jumping and twirling around with big smiles, they encouraged one another in sign language. On the other side of the stage I noticed that the drunks (who were just as intoxicated as the night before) were dancing around in a circle. Despite their stupor, they maintained their balance. "Hare Krsna!" they screamed. "Hare Krsna! Hare Krsna!" Suddenly, one of the retarded boys jumped up and started dancing. At first the crowd was a little repulsed by his uncoordinated moves, but his enthusiasm was infectious, and soon much of the crowd began to dance. I called Jayatam over. "Film the kirtan," I told him. He slowly panned the camera across the crowd. "No!" I yelled. "Film the deaf people and the drunkards! Look how they're relishing the holy names!" Suddenly Jayatam's eyes opened wide. "Srila Gurudeva!" he shouted. "Look! There's the girl who showed you the picture! Look how she's dancing!" About an hour later, Sri Prahlad wound up the kirtan. For a moment the people stood silent and motionless, trying to fathom what had just happened. It had been their first kirtan, and many seemed overwhelmed. We often end a festival by honoring our youngest guests for their enthusiasm in kirtan, so I came to the front of the stage and chose five of the best dancers from among the children. I asked them to join me onstage. As five little girls came forward, I gave them each a silk sari from our spiritual fashion booth. The crowd went wild. As I was making the presentation, I glanced out of the corner of my eye and saw the retarded boy who had enlivened the crowd with his dancing. I called a devotee over and asked him to bring the boy onto the stage. The boy came and stood next to me, smiling from ear to ear. I put my arm around him and announced to the crowd that we wanted to give him special recognition. I took off my long marigold garland and carefully put it around his neck, and the crowd broke into thunderous applause. I turned to say a final goodbye to the people, but they wouldn't stop clapping, so I smiled and waved goodbye. When I came down from the stage, Vara-nayaka was waiting for me. "Srila Gurudeva," he said, "do you remember the girl who wanted to return the books?Yes," I replied, "I saw her dancing in the kirtan.That's right," said Vara-nayaka. "She told me that after that kirtan she feels there is hope for her now, and she's decided to keep the books." "Such is the power of the holy names," I thought and headed back to my car. I walked slowly, savoring the last minutes of the spring tour. I saw the deaf people waving to me from the other side of the road, and I waved back. A few steps further, the group of drunks approached me and took turns shaking my hand. Then, just as I was getting into my car, the retarded boy came running up to give me a big hug. As I returned his tight embrace, I said a little prayer and asked Krsna to continue to give him mercy. And why wouldn't He? That night I had seen with my own eyes that Lord Caitanya makes no distinction between the sinner and the saint, the gentle and the ruffian, the scholar and the fool. A disappointing festival had suddenly become one the best of the season, and my heart was completely satisfied. tri bhuvana kamaniye gaura candre vatirne patita yavana murkhah sarvatha sphotayantah iha jagati samasta nama sankirtanarta vayam api ca krtarthah krsna namasrayad bhoh "When Lord Gauracandra, the most attractive personality within the three worlds advented in this universe, all the fallen souls, including the lowborn and foolish, began to wave their arms in the air excited by the congregational chanting of the holy names. We also were completely fulfilled because of our taking shelter of the names of Krsna. O my Lord!" [sri Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya: Sri Gauranga-mahima, Susloka-Satakam, Text 44] <font color="orange"> http://www.traveling-preacher.com </font color>

Hare Krishna Thank you prabhuji for that, it just goes to show that a person wanting Krishna's association, has to be determined like Srila (gaur?) Govinda Maharaja was/is.

Hare Krishna Mahavira is still here to help sincere devotees reach Sri Rama, in the Ramayana, Hanuman wanted to go back to the spiritual world with Sri Sri Sita-Rama to serve Him, but Lord Rama desired Hanumanji to stay on this earth and help devotees/inspire them to attain Sri Ram. There are many many devotess of Hanuman all over the world, but<<<< the easiest process of attaining God(krishna) in THIS AGE is by chanting Hare Krishna Maha-Mantra......Haribol!

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Hare Krishna Anybody who gets to Srila Prabhupada's quarters Wins a prize....Hurry this offer can't last! /images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Hare Krishna Bhagavad Gita As It Is It is said in the Manu smrti that No amount of sense gratification can satisfy lust, just as a fire cannot be extinguished by a constant supply of fuel. So what is the point of satisfying out Lust!!??????

Hare Krishna I think its good to 'dream' sometimes you never know they might even come true one day...

Hare Krishna Audarya-lila dasa and All /images/graemlins/smile.gif You are so right in what you say that people are so quick to criticise vaisnavas, instead of looking at their own flaws! I wish hopefuly I and everyone else won't make the same mistake, why not praise somebody and leave them be, ofcourse if you are a PURE DEVOTEE then you have a right to criticise, otherwise don;t be so high and mighty..OK!

Hare Krishna Keep posting please I_love_Krishna, this 'krishna talk' has not a lot of posts going into it, we need more!

Hare Krishna What more is there to say? That has always been my standpoint, SP is a pure devotee He can chastise because He is pure, we on the other hand have to right at all.

Hare Krishna I must say I really like reading the Krishna Books, they are very simple to read I esp. like the story about that person who thought he was Krishna the Supreme Lord and Krishna Himself could'nt check His laughter when he saw him.